


homebound

by abloom



Category: Shingeki no Kyojin | Attack on Titan
Genre: Alternate Universe - Detectives, Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Armin Arlert is a Little Shit, Armin is a Detective, Badass Armin Arlert, Case Fic, Criminal Eren Yeager, Drug Use, Eren causes trouble for everyone, M/M, Not within the major characters, Sexual Tension, lots of death
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2021-02-03
Updated: 2021-02-05
Packaged: 2021-03-15 09:14:19
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 2
Words: 5,516
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29186874
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/abloom/pseuds/abloom
Summary: After new evidence of a covert drug ring shows up in Shiganshina, young detective Armin Arlert is put in charge of handling this highly sensitive case with Chief of Police Erwin Smith's permission. Going back to his hometown forces Armin to come to terms with his past, and why Eren is caught up in the middle of it.
Relationships: Armin Arlert/Eren Yeager, Past Armin Arlert/Reiner Braun
Comments: 15
Kudos: 42





	1. homebound

Armin's parents were madly in love with each other. 

Even now, aged twenty-two, he wonders if he'll ever love someone the way his parents did. His father would cup his mother's cheeks when he got home from work, his grin gentle, warm. His mother would mirror his gaze, his father had so much love in his hands that it seemed to spill out of his hands, slipping through his fingers similar to her gold, long hair. The hands in his mother's hair made her feel like a princess, as Armin was told, but without a proper crown, as his father's hands took that place in her hair.

He wants to feel that way about someone. The type of love that's sweeter than his own solitude, something he values dearly. The kind that sweeps him off his feet like the high tides, overwhelms him, drowns him.

The kind of love that would make you leave your only child. Forcing independence on him, forcing responsibility onto someone else. Where nothing matters but each other. Where the kid questions if he's ever worth being someone to stick around for. He wants to love someone like that to understand his parents. They died, leaving him behind twice, and all he had to show for it was a badge fourteen years later.

Armin thinks back to it as he looks down at two corpses, splayed out on a king-sized bed, gripping each other's hands while huddled close. He wonders if his parents died like this. Comforting each other before their last moments, praying they died at the same time so they wouldn't have to watch each other slowly pass. Watch the light drain from their eyes, their mouth slack open, and for their hand to grow limp, cold. Gripping it tightly, hoping that someway, somehow, their own warmth would seep back into the other's body again, and this could be some sick, twisted dream.

Armin learned that death was never kind. It was greedy. It snatched who it could, taking those who were far too young, far too kind. It didn't pretend to distinguish. The hooded veil of death always hung over the Earth for a long time, always threatening. Death had ripped away a large part of Armin, a large part of his friends, and especially Eren.

He knows this now, especially when Eren Jaeger, a childhood friend of his, is a suspect of this murder. Or rather, a name he picked up upon investigating deaths of this type. An overdose from a new drug making its rounds in Shiganshina.

He hasn't seen Eren in years, not since they graduated in high school, the other separating himself from him and Mikasa completely. It's unsettling to find out that he's gone back to their hometown and got involved in the same mess that had gotten all of their parents killed. It's frustrating. It hurts, knowing that it had been so easy for Eren to leave, only contacting him with the occasional letter with no return address. He hadn't gotten a new letter in three years.

Armin hopes Eren is okay. He hopes this is a misunderstanding. That his best friend is only trying to clean up the mess his parents left behind and would come back to him. Would come back home. He finds himself holding onto a high school relationship, in the middle of an investigation, at that, and is snapped out of it by a rough clap on his shoulder. It startles him, though the only indication of that is the stiffness in his limbs.

"You're staring, Armin, what is it?" Jean leans over to peer at the shorter blond, quirking a brow. It's no surprise that Jean is the one to notice that something's off, that his eyes had shifted focus from the bodies and had been looking past them, stuck in his own head, switching from topic to topic. He has to do better. He has to focus.

Armin shakes his head, "I'm fine. Just trying to piece everything together." He says, letting out a sigh as he shuts his eyes, taking a moment to analyze the information he has so far. "Hitch Dreyse. She was found by her mother earlier this morning, but there were no missing person reports filed in for her."

"So, what?" Connie says, standing up from where he was leaned over the corpses, careful not to touch anything. "You're saying they got her within, what, maybe forty-eight hours? What's that gotta do with anything? They've been dead for about.. twelve hours?"

Armin nods, and he understands why the other hadn't taken notice of anything, but the details were small, you could only tell if you were paying attention. "The person administering these drugs keep their holding times low. Efficient. Hitch and Marlo both have rope burns on their wrists and ankles. Not to mention Marlo's broken nose and split lip. They were kidnapped."

Armin is stating the basics of the case, reading it out to them slowly, easy to consume. "They're structured enough to take the bodies and dispose of them before the police department would have launched an active search." His arms are crossed over his chest, and he stares at the two deceased lovers with pity. It's all he can feel for them.

"What does that mean for us? What did this guy want with them?" Jean questions, equally as lost as Connie seems to be, but he's better at hiding it. He likes investigating with them. They're attentive, full of questions and it was easy to tell what they were thinking. Honest. He likes that in a person. It's different from working with Mikasa or Levi. Quiet and Blunt. They wouldn't appreciate Armin not getting to the point like this.

"It's not 'one guy'. It's a group. To work this fast and efficiently wouldn't be the workings of one man. When we stop looking for a single man and instead, a possible mob family, or a larger organization, then we'll be on the right track. That, and the timing of it would allude to familiarity with Shiganshina's missing persons policies. Also, the drug was administered by injection to the jugular. It'd have been impossible for them to have done it themselves, they were executed, and they held onto each other in their last moments."

Silence filled the room while the other two men seemed to collectively let out a sigh, stressed, remorseful. He almost feels bad for adding that last part, but appealing to their emotions would help them understand better. Gentle manipulation worked in terms of getting them to think properly for a case.

"Our pool of suspects is pretty big this time around. This case is a lot bigger than we thought it'd be before we took it up. I mean, this is the eighth death so far in the span of two days." Connie rubs a hand over his face, hands stopping at his mouth. He's visibly stressed. It's easy for Armin to tell when Connie's eyes are shifting around the room like that, desperate for clues.

"One of our suspects is our old friend's, too. Fucking insane. That idiot still causes trouble for everyone around him, and he never listens to anyone but you." Jean says, pressing an accusing finger into Armin's chest.

Armin shifts uncomfortably, looking away. "I've never been able to influence his actions. He's always done his own thing, and I usually sat back and watched."

"Yeah? Well, you're gonna have to talk to him. Not in the uniform, though. You've gotta find out what his role in all this is, and why he's always the last person the victims contacted." Connie chips in, and Armin doesn't feel like having this conversation. "It's not looking good for him." Connie is pouring salt into the wound, but Armin doesn't flinch.

"He knows I'm a detective! I can't do anything without him thinking I'm trying to bring him in." He defends, and he hopes that's the end of the conversation, but it isn't. Not when Connie and Jean share a knowing look at each other, then both of their gazes are back on him.

Armin is suddenly defensive, frowning at them both. "What..? Just say it."

"If you meet him again 'coincidentally', there wouldn't be a reason for him to suspect that you're investigating him. Just you, trying to become friends with him again. He trusts you. He always has. There's no reason he wouldn't slip up a bit and give you, of all people, a clue. We both know how you can come up with solutions based on the smallest slip-ups." Jean explains, his arms crossed now, clearly satisfied with himself.

Armin looked at Connie, searching his face for any signs of disagreement.

There were none.

"You're serious.."

"Of course we're serious!" Connie chimes in, "It'll work. You're good at what you do. You're good at making people talk, and you've known him longer than any of us."

It's easier said than done. Eren is an unpredictable force. His presence in other people's lives has the same results as a natural disaster. He disorients, hurts, takes, and leaves you smarter than you were before, forces you to pick up your own pieces while he leaves. Eren is a reminder that Armin isn't good enough to stick around for.

It hurts to think about.

"I do believe that it'll bring us closer to finding out what the drug is.. and who's behind administering it." Armin sounds almost timid, but that seems to be the only answer the others need, because they're coming to put an arm around his shoulder, Connie ruffling his hair.

"It'll be your first undercover mission. You'll have this in the bag."

Armin reluctantly agrees, mind wandering to bringing this idea up to his superior before deciding to go through with it. This would be his best bet. He knows they'll agree to it.

If putting Eren away means stopping the drug-related deaths in the neighborhood they grew up in, then so be it. He can do it. He was meant for this.

At least, he hopes so.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> this is only the first chapter, but i plan on making the next chapters have at least 3k words each. there's a lot to cover! and i want you guys to get as much as you can out of each chapter.
> 
> thanks for reading. i have this posted on wattpad as well (user : pleated) if you want faster updates!


	2. pilot jones

When they bring the idea up to the Chief of Police, Armin expects to be shot down immediately. It's ridiculous, even for Connie, who was no stranger to coming up with outlandish schemes. Usually, they'd move on with his suggestions, leaving the ideas to those who didn't take action purely on impulse. Connie and Sasha are two sides of the same coin, and while their expertise is needed, not when handling a highly sensitive drug ring case. At least, that's what it's looking like.

It's serious, as Shiganshina isn't where they were sanctioned. They only have jurisdiction in Trost, as they are the Trost Police Department, well known in Paradis for busting big cases that spread into neighboring cities. When the Tybur family was organizing an arms trafficking ring in Trost, unknowingly allowing unsuspecting, poor young adults to deliver their cargo with a promise of proper pay as long as they didn't ask questions, Erwin managed to crack the case wide open. It was years ago, one of Armin's first few years as an officer, and he witnessed the entire thing.

The Tybur family isn't gone completely, they're suspects of this case now that the department decided that this is the workings of a mob family. All of them, in some way, have a connection to Eren, they have yet to figure out why. Armin crosses his arms in his seat while Connie points erratically at the board, explaining his thought process.

"All of them were in contact with Eren a few hours before their deaths. There's no mistake that he's a part of this, but we don't know who he's working for. We know it's one of the founding families, but which one?" He points at the heads of the three biggest current mob families in Paradis, gesturing wildly to them.

"He's not the only way we can get our information," Hange chimes in, adjusting their position in their seat, frowning at the board. "There's been a lot of movement in every family, and it was a few months before the first murder." They lean over the table and put their hand under their chin, "The Azumabito family is opening themselves up to new recruits, Ackerman's who had separated themselves from the mob. We know this because they reached out to Mikasa."

Mikasa, as mentioned, shifts uncomfortably on her position standing by the door, silent. Armin can tell the topic makes her uncomfortable, but she's a lot more alert than she had been mere moments ago.

"They hadn't reached out to Levi.. we assume it's because of his high status in the police department and his obvious loyalty to Smith, but that's not the point." Hange waves their hands dismissively, "For a while now, they've had a tense relationship with the Tyburs, but we know now that the new head and Willy are working together. They've been joining their men to conduct shipments on Paradis' harbor to nearby countries and cities."

Hange keeps going when they realize everyone is following, but they don't give everyone else too much time to catch up. The group should be used to their non-stop rambling by now. "The usual nonsense. Drugs, but they're supplying guns to the Baumeisters as well. Neither group ever held a connection with the Baumeister's, that family had more connections with the government rather than making our regular gangsters. They don't involve themselves in that kind of thing. Money laundering and fraud is more their area."

"If we figure out who the new head of the Azumabito family is, we can watch them and get intel on who made the drug in the first place, and why they're administering it - or sharing it to use amongst these three families."

Sasha raises her hand, confused. "So, where does Eren fit into all of this? He's not even in any of these families... I know you don't have to be apart of their bloodline to get recruited, but this is random, even for him."

No one seems to have an answer, but judging by the way Levi is looking at Armin, the corporal knows Armin has something to say. "Armin." His voice forces the blond to make eye contact, "You've been quiet. I know you want to say something. Spit it out already."

The more he thinks about this case, the more he wants out. Digging into mob family territory means he'd have to think back to his time in Shiganshina, how mob families had essentially ruined their childhoods completely. He's separated his emotions from work for a long time now, and there's no reason he shouldn't do it now.

"Eren doesn't fit into any of this." He says, a direct response to Sasha's question. "I grew up with him. He's always, always hated the mob. The gangsters used to harass my parents before they died, and even after they killed my grandparents. They killed Mikasa's parents, Eren's mother, and before that, his father went missing. It doesn't make sense for him to join these mob families after hating them for all his life." He let out a sigh, sitting up.

"The eight victims we have aren't random civilians, each one of them was associated with a mob family. Our most recent ones were associated with the Tyburs, two from Azumabito, and four from Baumeister's. Eren coming into contact with them could just mean he's weeding out anyone who had been out of line. From what we could tell, all of the victims had plans of running away somehow. I don't think they'd let anyone leave with the amount of information they have. It makes sense but.."

And Armin's fingers are pressing into the pads of his nose, irritated, "We don't have enough information. We don't have any intel on any of the families, because we aren't associated with any of them."

Chief Smith's silence is terrifying, he was taking in everyone's respective thoughts and opinions, and formulating his own plan in his head. It was easier when Erwin was calling the shots, but with Armin in charge of this case, there's a lot more on his shoulders than he's used to. Other officers in his department are already skeptical of having someone so young lead a drug ring case, but if he messes up, their concerns would be completely valid.

"That's where you come in." The Chief says, and Armin knows Connie is beaming with pride now that his and Jean's idea is approved by Erwin. Jean's been quiet as if he's embarrassed to have shared an idea with Connie in the first place. "It would work. It's not suspicious for you to be in your hometown, you do have family there, correct?"

"Yes, sir. An aunt and an uncle."

"So you have an alibi," He's adjusting the files on his desk, shuffling them together.

"Yes, sir."

"Mikasa would be an ideal candidate, but you are the only one he's reached out to, correct?"

"Yes, sir."

"So you will gather the intel we need by regularly meeting with him, and reporting back to us. Any objections?" The chief leaves no room for any, almost daring anyone to disagree, and even Armin isn't as bold as to directly go against the Chief.

"No, sir." This time, it's from everyone in the room, stiff and to attention.

"Good. That concludes our meeting." With that, he stands up and gathers his papers in a folder, leaving them behind, with the Corporal and Lieutenant following close behind.

It's Jean who lets out a sigh of relief, looking to Armin with a twinge of pity. "I didn't think he'd agree." He offers, and Armin guesses it's his way of apologizing for bringing the idea up in the first place.

Mikasa's hand is on his shoulder now, causing the blond to look up at him. "You know I'd go with you if I could, right?" And Armin knows why she can't go. She doesn't have anyone she's connected to in Shiganshina. Not the Azumabitos, and definitely not her parents. All she has there at the moment is Eren, who hadn't made any effort to contact her. He feels guilty that he's going to see him rather than her.

"I know. I'll be fine. I just don't like being so many steps behind. We've had eight casualties from this case alone, and we don't even know what the drug is, where it's coming from, and who's in charge of it. We all knew Eren, it doesn't make sense that he's caught up in this. Murder, at that. He's never... "

When the silence follows, Armin realizes he's sulking, and publicly, too. He sits up straight before anyone can come and comfort him, or even say anything reassuring.

He can do this. He doesn't need any consoling. "I'll get everything ready, and keep you guys updated." He explains, grabbing his own copy of the case files while he subtly shrugs Mikasa's hand off of his shoulder.

"Hey, man, if this is too much--"

Armin doesn't let Connie finish, dismissing him with a wave of his hand. "I've handled worse. I'm fine. If it's ever too much, I'll let you know."

And it's Sasha who tries to speak up and invite him for lunch, but Armin is already out of the door. He doesn't have time to sit and laugh with the rest of them. He needs a plan, because speaking to these victim's families over a case he has little to no information about is taking a toll on him.

He's making a promise to himself, anyways. If Eren really is killing these people, he'll put him in jail, childhood friendship aside.

He speaks to Erwin personally about what his 'plan' is, but there isn't much of one, not yet, at least. He's supposed to go back to Shiganshina under the guise of seeing his extended family for a visit and taking a break from work. The idea is to let Eren know that he's taken a Leave of Absence in response to him being reckless at work, a sign that he's been biting off more than he could chew.

He has four weeks to get what he needs from Shiganshina and report back to Trost Police Department with enough intel to put an end to whatever it is that's plaguing his hometown. It's more than enough time, he thinks. Especially since he's going in this solo, and he has no distractions. No friends, no side cases that he'd have to worry about in his jurisdiction. Since his department is, more or less, working with Shiganshina's, he's going to go by their rules on their turf.

Erwin gives him a pep talk, and he has a way of speaking that'd inspire you to do the impossible. He says him putting Armin in this position proves that he trusts him to get results out of this. Allowing Armin to work alone while the rest of his team works on a different aspect of the case. It's different when it's one on one. Just the two of them and Armin is forced to make eye contact that he's clearly uncomfortable with. When it's over, Armin relaxes just a tad, but he's a lot more prepared than he had been. Talking to the Chief does that to you.

***

Talking to his aunt and uncle isn't as easy as he would've liked. They eagerly accepted his request to come to visit, as Armin has been declining it for years now. It's almost odd how they accept him with open arms, throwing their arms over him and pulling him into a welcoming hug. Like they missed him. Like they really, truly missed him. He didn't want to think about it.

"Oh, you look just like your father." His aunt says, cupping his cheeks while staring fondly at Armin. It's her brother, and he remembers his aunt constantly coming over to playfully bicker with his father. They were poor, but they used to be happy.

"When you were a kid, you were the spitting image of your mom... Now, look at you. You're a man now." His uncle finally speaks, and now that Armin's looking, his brown hair is fading into a dull gray. He's grown a full beard since Armin's last seen him, a good mix of gray and brown. He looks good. They both do.

Armin settles with a close-mouthed smile, unsure of what to say. He's always been quite awkward, and he isn't sure what to say when he's reminded that he looks like his dead parents. Sometimes, he can barely remember what they look like. On his face, they're still here, present to those who knew them.

"Oh, goodness, I shouldn't talk about them. Let's get you settled, right?" She lowers her hands and reaches for Armin's suitcase, which he swivels out of her grasp.

"I'm not letting you bring my bags upstairs, you're being too kind to me already." He says, gesturing to the busy kitchen, full of bags from the grocery trip they must've taken together before Armin got there. "I can take it upstairs and get settled in, and then I can come down and help you with dinner?"

He knows the offer is going to be shot down. They're happy to have him over, and don't want him to lift a finger for his first few days. He knows this.

"Don't worry about that. You get settled in, walk around town for a bit, and by the time you come back, dinner will be ready." Friedrich, his real name, says, with a rough pat on his back. Armin resists the urge to wince.

"Are you sure.? I came here to be with you guys.." A complete and utter lie. He would never come back to this town if he didn't have to. He wanted nothing to do with it. Too many memories that didn't make sense and all of his pain and suffering was Shiganshina's to blame.

Katja, his aunt, goes behind him and presses her palms against his back, pushing him towards the direction of his room. "Don't make us say it twice, now. Settle down, we know you came for a break from work. All we want is for you to relax."

Once they're in front of the room he'll be staying in, he looks back at the two, who is gesturing him inside. He can't help the smile that forms onto his face, it's small but visible."Thank you."

Armin isn't at all excited to leave the house, because he decides that the first thing he's going to do is visit his parents' graves.

He hasn't done it since he left this city in the first place, and he never planned on going back. It hurt too much to think about, but he found himself walking to the flower shop despite the feelings bubbling beneath the surface. He was on auto-pilot, muscle memory taking him to the shop across the street from the park, and about a five minute walk away from the cemetery. He remembers. Back when they had just recently passed, his grandparents and he would walk to the flower shop and purchase lilies, then to their graves to replace the flowers from their last visit. Two bouquets of lilies, for his grandparents, as well.

Obviously, they weren't as consistent. He doubts anyone visits their graves anymore, and he isn't as upset about that as he should be. He understands. He can live with it.

Walking there is still difficult. His steps feel heavier as he nears, even after he buys the white lilies, gripping them tightly in his hands. It's the perfect day for a walk, too, if he were nostalgic enough to pay attention to his surroundings. He didn't bother thinking about the things that have changed since he's last gotten here, or if his favorite small bakery was still by this street corner, if his, Mikasa's, and Eren's names are still carved into the old, huge tree deep in the park he's walking by. He doesn't care to know if anyone remembers him, or if anyone misses them. He's only here because he has a job to do.

Visiting his parents isn't a part of it, but it feels right to do so. There's no underlying reason. He doesn't miss them. He's past missing them. He's past missing anyone.

When he arrives at the gates of the cemetery, he avoids the gazes from everyone else mourning over someone. They only glance for a moment, nothing worth starting a conversation over. It's still muscle memory, and he goes to his grandparents' graves first, buried right next to each other. It's what they would've wanted, he's convinced. They loved each other in the way that living with someone for 45 years could make you. They were equal parts of each other when they died, he's convinced.

He feels his throat tighten when he sees old flowers at both of their graves. Purple hyacinths, laying there, and Armin frowns. He's startled that someone visited, but to have done it so recently. The flowers seemed a few weeks old, maybe less. It was dead by now. Armin silently picked up the dead bouquet and placed it down his own.

He couldn't stand to be there for too long, so he made his way to his parent's graves. He couldn't help but wonder what it must've felt like knowing your children died before you. The pain his grandparents felt taking in what their own kids left behind. So when he reaches, he sees the same old flowers show up on his parents' graves, and Armin does the same thing. He won't be here to do this frequently. For the four weeks that he's been here, and that's it. He's never going to find a reason to come back again.

He stares at their graves for longer than he'd like to admit, his mind going back to a place that was a lot less gloomy. Running around the streets with his friends and pointing out picture books with both of them. Armin, more than anything, wanted to be a sailor. When he was young and dumb, obsessed with having a reason to be on the ocean constantly and see the world. When his parents died, he decided he wanted to be someone who could make sure no other kid felt the way he did.

He finds himself getting nostalgic, and he decides that's enough memory-digging for today. Walking into the cemetery is already more than enough, and going anywhere else would drain him out. He knows he's only been out of his aunt's house for about forty-five minutes, but that's all he needs. He turns on his heel and makes the logical decision to go back home and start his search tomorrow when he's calmer.

Of course, things don't go as planned. With Armin's luck? They never do.

He stares at the fresh, purple hyacinths in the taller man's hands, and down at the dead ones in his own. He looks up, blue eyes meet green, and Armin feels like time stopped for a few seconds. Even that wasn't enough to catch him up with current events.

His hair's longer, tied up into a messy bun, strands of hair falling onto his face, and both of them seem to be looking each other up and down. Armin finds himself looking up to the other more than he used to, and even though he's gotten taller since the last time Armin saw him, it doesn't help. He doesn't know how long they look at each other, trying to figure out the right thing to say. Though, for once, Armin doesn't know what to say.

"Armin."

He didn't anticipate being looked at like that, up and down, taking in the differences from high school, to now. Armin didn't bother looking too hard, not now, of all times. He thinks he'd rather die.

"Eren.." He breathes out, and seeing the bouquet meant for his late family makes his throat tighten. He's not going to cry. Not for this. It's stupid. He's over it. "You... You brought flowers, for them?" He skips the pathetic 'I missed you' or 'Where've you been?' They can cover that ground later. Right now? All he wanted to know was what Eren was doing here, of all places.

Eren looks down at the flowers and nods, "Uh, yeah. People stopped bringing flowers, so I started. Didn't think you'd ever be around to replace them."

It almost sounds like a jab, and Armin forces down the small bud of anger before it could fester. He wasn't the one that left. Eren was. What he chooses not to do isn't anyone's business but his own. It was his family. He can grieve however he pleases.

"Visiting. Gonna be here for about four weeks. Kind of a forced vacation from overworking myself," He said with a shrug, "I didn't think you'd ever come back to this place."

Eren is walking past him to place the flowers down, shrugging. "I actually live here now. I have been for about four years." He says, and when he stars down at Armin's parents' graves, Eren's expression seems to harden. Though it's so quick that Armin thinks he imagined it. "Did you get my letters?"

Armin nods, "They didn't say anything about where you lived. I've been meaning to catch up, but there was no return address. Why'd you do that, by the way? That's old fashioned, even for you."

It was a gentle nod to how traditional Eren tried to be when he was younger. Wanting to be the kind of man who protected women, was strong, able to be relied on, a provider. Of course, he was young, though he knows that didn't carry on very deep into adolescence. Armin would know, he was there.

"Well, I... Actually, I can talk to you about it. And I mean, actually, talk to you about it. If you're not busy right now. We can go on a walk or .. stop at a cafe. Whichever you prefer."

His heart, which he rarely listens to, is telling him that getting involved with Eren again is bad news. It shattered the first time they separated, and he's setting himself for even more of it by associating with him.

Even then, he has a job to do. Something as flimsy as his silly little emotions mean nothing when there are lives at stake. The same thing that happened to his parents, and his friend's parents, could happen to someone else in this very neighborhood. If there's even the smallest chance that Eren is behind these murders, administering this drug to people in high dosages to kill them, Armin will get as close as he needs to find out why. Armin's answer isn't quick, he's clearly thinking about it, but he decides on an answer. He shrugs his shoulder, the smallest of smiles gracing his previously neutral features.

"It's a pretty nice day for a walk, how about it?"

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> it's 6am. i have two redbulls beside me. I'll go back and make some changes when i see mistakes, but you guys enjoy. i wasn't going to wait too long for you guys to meet eren lol


End file.
